


Letting Go.

by ZerotheHero000



Series: Begin Again, With Harmony [1]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Caesar's Legion, Dead Money DLC, Friends to Lovers, Honest Hearts DLC, M/M, NCR | New California Republic, New Vegas, Old World Blues DLC, Slow Build, Slow Burn, The Divide (Fallout)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-03
Updated: 2020-03-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:27:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22547029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZerotheHero000/pseuds/ZerotheHero000
Summary: "Farewells can be a time of sadness -- letting go, difficult."Six has traversed all across the Mojave, for better or worse. Sometimes, these travels lead to having to let go, of the past, of anger, everything. Though it's hard, and sometimes painful, and threatens to rip him to his very core, the courier refuses to stop and keeps moving forward through it all, while pushing those closest to him to do the same.The story of how a single person can change the lives of countless, hopeless individuals, and more specifically, the life of one ex recon sniper, who didn't know that letting go was possible until he met the courier.
Relationships: Carla Boone/Craig Boone (Past), Craig Boone/Male Courier
Series: Begin Again, With Harmony [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1835329
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfiction, so I hope it isn't too bad! This is more of an introductory, trust-building chapter, and obviously none of this belongs to me, I'm just having some fun with characters that I like!

Boone never thought he would actually be able to live again. After the Bitter Springs Massacre, losing Carla, and their child, he had become a bitter shell of what he used to be, even his friendship with Manny wasn’t the same as it once was. The only thing he was truly living for in Novac was trying to find the bastard who sold his wife, but he was even losing hope of accomplishing that until he met the Courier.

He had heard Manny talking to Cliff of a new person visiting Novac as Boone passed them for the night, and he paused on the stairs as he heard Manny talk about how he asked the guy to clear out some ferals by the Repconn Test Center, and he apparently delivered. The image of some gruff mercenary flashed in his mind and he continued his ascent up the stairs. Boone hadn’t been expecting someone to open the door to the dinosaur's mouth, but with how quiet the courier had been, he was grateful for the creaking hinges of the door. At first, he thought Manny had forgotten something, but then quickly realized it was someone he had never seen before. The courier was definitely not what the veteran was expected. He was young. Maybe twenty-two at most, with dark sun-kissed skin and messy dark hair that somehow seemed clean and soft, despite the rest of his person seeming dirty from scrounging the wastes. The only thing that seemed to give him any age was the small, blooming scar on his forehead, that had been hidden mostly by his hair but was still very visible from a keen set of eyes. 

Six, as he introduced himself, had been a pretty smooth talker with a smooth, youthful voice, despite his young age, and proved more than willing to help Boone find the person who betrayed him and Carla. He took Boone’s beret carefully, treating it with an amount of respect the older man hadn’t really expected, and he was gone as quickly as he’d arrived. 

Boone waited, and it only took a surprising two hours of the night for him to see the courier walk to the area in front of the dinosaur they had discussed with...Jeanie May. He watched the kid chatting her up, making small talk about the lovely look of the Dinosaur in the moonlight, and subtly placed the beret on his head. Boone looked through his scope, lined up the target, and took the shot. He watched as Jeanie’s head flew off from the impact. An explosion of force. He watched the courier, who had a few drops of blood on his face as he looted her body and strolled back into the gift shop to talk to the sniper.  
“How’d you know it was her?” Boone asked as was given his beret, and received the proof of sale, causing a flair of anger and feeling of bitter vengeance to rush through his body, though he didn’t let it show, and handed the paper back, which the courier put in his pack. Boone had finally gotten justice against the woman who took his family from him.

The sniper thought that would have been the end of it until the kid invited him to tag along in leaving Novac. Boone had not expected that at all, but something about the courier, it felt like fate. Like the universe wanted him to go, that this would be what led to Boone getting what he deserved, so he agreed. 

Six seemed very perky and amused as they left the next morning, though Boone was confused when he was met with a floating robot, who hovered alongside the courier and seemed to make alert noises when the older man approached  
“ED-E, this is our new pal, Boone. If he shoots something, you should shoot it too.” he patted the bot (on the head?) and he smiled at the sniper proudly “Ready?” Boone nodded, though he was sure he was going to regret it, and they left Novac. 

The first thing Boone noticed while traveling with the Courier, was the fact that he was a shameless flirt. Men, women, ghoul, NCR, civilian. It didn’t seem to matter if it wasn’t legion. Hell, the kid managed to flirt his way out of a situation with a powder ganger. It didn’t bother Boone, he just didn’t expect someone so young to be so gifted with words or have such a charm about him. And with that flirtatious nature, came a lot of attention. It seemed that any town they went in that Six had been to previously, the people really enjoyed his presence, and seemed to come up to him to talk often, especially in Primm. 

The second thing Boone noticed, was that the kid was very keen on getting him to open up and share private information, which Boone absolutely refused to divulge when they first started traveling together. He didn’t want to open up, didn’t want to let the Courier get close. People who got close to him would end up dead. But the more time they spent together, the more they killed legion scum, the more he started to open up about his wife, sharing what happened after the kid babbled something about them trusting each other to work more effectively together.

Boone mostly listened to the kids requests when it came to how they worked together, but all bets were off when they neared Nelson “If I see any Legion, I’m shooting.” He warned him, at the very least.  
“That’s fine. Now, let’s go get us some ears.” The kid smiled widely and the three of them headed into the camp. They began sniping a few legionaries on the edge of the encampment before they were noticed, and all hell broke loose. Boone took the high ground in a decently covered area to snipe, while the kid went in with ED-E, shooting with a 10 mm pistol. He seemed to be making a lot of noise, distractionary tactics for the sniper and away from the three poor soldiers strung up on the crosses in the middle of the camp.  
While Boone was more protected and relatively out of harm, the kid wasn’t as lucky, the occasional bullet grazing his arm or leg as it narrowly missed hitting its mark, and the legionaries who fought up close and personal managed some more damage. Boone managed to see the courier getting punched in the ribcage with a powerfist, and later stabbed in the right arm with a spear. The sniper took out the one with the spear while the kid shot the one with the powerfist in the face.  
When the fighting was finally over, and the Legionnaires were finally dead, the freed the three NCR captives, managing to save them all. “Mercy killings a last resort. Glad you recognized we had options. Mercy killings expected of NCR snipers The Legion likes to torture their prisoners within sight of NCR positions. We get called on to end it. I’ve had my share. Some of them, you think, maybe you could have gotten them out.” Boone spoke quietly and Six turned to look at him.  
“I think it’s time you told me what happened to your wife.” the courier spoke softly.  
“I don’t see what this helps. She’s dead.”  
“The better we understand each other, the more effective we’ll be.”  
Boone let out a long sigh before finally conceding “Alright.”

“She...I tracked her down. Southeast, near the river. They were selling her. Saw it through my scope. Whole place swarming with Legion. Hundreds of them. Bidding for things that no man has a right to. I just had my rifle with me. Just me, against all of them, so...I took the shot.”  
“Better for her to die than live a Legion slave” the courier spoke softly.  
“Yeah. What they do to women...that’s worse than death. There was no choice in what I did. It was more like...being forced to watch something you can’t stop. I was meant to pull that trigger. It was a mistake to think I could escape it. You take out a debt, it’s only a matter of time before someone comes collecting. Things just finally caught up with me. All this was only ever going to play out one way. It still is. I don’t have any say. All I can do is wait for it to be done with me.” He looked away from Six, staring out at the sky.  
“You make it sound like your wife’s death was inevitable.”  
“It was gonna be something. If I’d never met Carla, it would’ve been something else. I should’ve never gotten close to her. I’ve got bad things coming to me. You’d better keep your distance too.”  
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing I’m the luckiest bastard in the wasteland. If a bullet to the head can’t keep me down, I don’t think your bad luck will either.” This took Boone aback slightly. He wasn’t expecting that, and when he looked back at the Courier, he was smiling like a feral animal, looking around at the dead legion bodies. He beamed proudly at what they had done before promptly collapsing, Boone managing to catch the kid before his head slammed into a rock.  
“Dumbass” he shook his head and carried the courier back to Camp Forlorn Hope, ED-E buzzing and beeping wildly around them.

When Six woke up, he was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by Dr. Richards, who he rather enjoyed flirting with, and felt pretty good, despite tightly bandaged, on one of the medical tent beds. He was also happy to see Boone, sitting in a chair near his bed, glad his companion was there. “Where’s ED-E?” He murmured, voice hoarse.  
“That’s the first thing out of your mouth?” Boone commented eyebrow raised slightly, the kid too ridiculous to not emote “He’s buzzing around outside the tent.”  
“Oh good, I’m glad you two are okay” he smiled and sat up, wincing from the pain of it. It was pretty late, so after some more flirting, Dr. Richards wished them a good night and left the tent, leaving the two alone.

After a while of comfortable silence, Six asked about Bitter springs. “What happened there?”  
“There was a...miscommunication,” Boone said slowly.  
“That must have been one big miscommunication.”  
The sniper scoffed “That’s how they wrote it up in the report. We did what we were there to do. Lot of people got killed. That’s war. Maybe looking back, you’d do things differently, but that’s not how it works. In the field, you hesitate, you or someone you care about will die. They teach that from day one.”  
“Sounds like you have some regrets.” Six murmured, good at reading the other, though they’d only been traveling together for a little over a week.  
“You don’t come out of a tour of duty without regrets. It’s best just to not think about it.”

There was a brief moment of silence between them. Not awkward, per se, but more somber and sobering.

“Is it because of Bitter Springs that you think you’ve got bad things coming?” Six finally asked.  
“Life has a way of punishing you for the mistakes you make. Big enough mistake, punishment can take a while. Mine’s not over.”  
“Maybe you can make up for your mistakes.”  
“A murderer who does good deeds is still a murderer. And he’ll still get his judgment. I left the NCR when my tour was up. Had enough of war. Decided I was gonna start over. None of it made a difference in the end.” The courier seemed to inwardly cringe at that statement ever so slightly, as though he thought of something he was also keen on forgetting.  
“Do you think about Bitter Springs a lot?”  
“Yeah. Always, Even when I sleep.”  
“Maybe it would help to go back there.”  
“I don’t think so. It won’t change anything. And that’s a memory I don’t want refreshed.” And he ended the conversation there.

After a few days of resting so the Courier could heal, they left Camp Forlorn Hope, heading north, and after a while of silent contemplation, Boone finally spoke up.  
“Hey. I thought some more about what you said. I think maybe you’re right. Maybe I should go to Bitter Springs.”  
“Okay. We’ll make it a point to stop there.” Six reassured him without any questions and tried to make it seem like they weren’t going directly there, but Boone could tell they were, that the kid was making it some sort of personal mission to help the sniper fight his inner demons.

Boone wasn’t expecting the trip to do much, and definitely wasn’t expecting the camp to get attacked by the Legion while they were there. But there it was, his debt staring him in the face and the way he was going to end up paying it back. While he was more than willing to lose his life, he wasn’t sure his conscience could handle him being the reason for the kid losing his.  
“Looks like a legion raiding party. Might be too big, even for us. If you want out I won’t blame you. But I’m going to stay. See if I can hold them off.”  
“Saves us the trouble of finding them.” Six spoke with a lopsided grin.  
“The day you showed up in Novac, I had a feeling I was supposed to go with you. That it was time to end all this. And now I know.” he murmured  
“What are we waiting for?” Six questioned and the two raced down to the encampment with ED-E following close behind, running fast and hard to get to the different waves and fight them off. The first wave wasn’t all that difficult, and they were able to snipe most of them without trouble. The second wasn’t much worse. By far, the worst thrown at them was the dogs. A few managed to warm Six, one chomping into his leg and he let out a pained cry, causing Boone and ED-E to switch their attention to him, taking out the two free dogs while the courier shot the one biting him, prying its jaw from his calf. He used a stimpack and quickly ran with Boone to keep killing the raiding party.

As the sun came up, and they looked around, and there were no Legionnaires around them, both of them still alive.  
“Huh. We made it through after all. Not sure what to make of that.” Boone murmured. “I thought my time had come. For a minute there everything made sense. I could feel the end coming. I was ready for it.”  
“Maybe living with what you’ve done is your punishment.”  
“I never thought of it that way. Always expected something...more final. But maybe it is.”  
“You can’t take back what you’ve done. But your regrets can set you on a better path.”  
“Still feels like I’m living on borrowed time, but you got a point. There’s still some things I can do before all this is over.”

The courier put a hand on Boone’s shoulder, smiling proudly, and he felt a wave of something washing over him. He looked at the man who single-handedly helped him overcome the worst of his demons, the goofy, ridiculous kid who talked too much, and it gave him hope.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boone and Six make some new friends while traveling the Mojave.

The Courier was very charismatic and kind, which would probably explain why the kid was slowly growing a gaggle of followers around him. Six, Boone and ED-E had been traveling together for a few weeks when they came across Arcade Gannon in the Old Mormon Fort. Six had been running around helping Julie Farkas with the Followers of Apocalypse with supply issues and helping a few Freesiders with getting clean (including threatening a certain drug dealer) when they stumbled across the doctor. 

Gannon was intelligent, and very intelligent, unlike Boone, who preferred words over actions. The sniper would have been surprised that the kid could hold such good conversations with the doctor if he hadn’t been traveling with Six for a while already. He was also handsome, cleaner, and seemed more put together than Boone would have expected from someone in Freeside. Arcade flirted a bit with the Courier as the two talked, and the younger man flirted back, being very warm as he invited the doctor to tag along with them. When Arcade showed a little resistance, the courier turned up the charm in order to convince him. Thus, the duo and ED-E gained themselves a doctor.  
Boone could see the benefits of having an extra set of hands when it came to large fights and an experienced healer, especially since Six threw himself into dangerous situations like an idiot all the time. But, while Boone would never admit it, Arcade made him feel just a little guilty. He rarely held long conversations, especially not deep, intelligent ones with the courier. He had mostly let the kid babble about random things without much feedback or reception, and while Six didn’t seem to mind, the sniper could make out the hint of disappointment in his eyes when Boone wouldn’t say much in response. He didn’t have as easy of a time getting along with the kid like the doctor, and that frustrated him, though he did appreciate that the two older men shared a similar exasperation to the couriers reckless behaviors. Boone honestly thought Arcade was going to have a heart attack when they went into Quarry Junction to clear out the Deathclaws for Sloan.

“Are you clinically insane? Did that bullet destroy all of your self-preservation?” Arcade asked in an exasperated, gobsmacked tone. Boone didn’t know why, but something struck him as odd when he was reminded about Six’s wound, but he dismissed any thoughts as soon as they came.  
“Possibly” Boone muttered under his breath to the doctor.  
“There’s four of us. We can get one egg.” He rolled his eyes and laughed shamelessly “Besides, if we clean out the Quarry, we can help Sloan get back to work. They gotta make money to eat.”  
“This isn’t going to go well.” The sniper sighed and wasn’t entirely wrong. It did not go as smoothly as it could have, but they didn’t die, so that was something. 

The group had crept into the quarry and managed to snipe several from a distance, though it took several good shots to take the horrible, monstrous things down. A few managed to run up on them, which caused Six to unleash the most unmanly shriek Boone had ever heard, which would have been funny if he hadn’t felt the same terrifying sense of dread as his courier.  
Luckily they could keep them mostly back with distance weapons, but the Alpha Male managed a good couple swipes on Six, his claws cutting his shoulder, very close to his neck, and the other to his chest, which cut through his armor and skin, knocking him back like a tumbleweed until he slammed his back into a rock, slumping down like a ragdoll.

Boone felt his blood run cold as he saw the others body go limp against the rock and started shooting the alpha as intensely as possible, drawing his attention away from the courier, and ED-E jumped in, but Arcade was busy fighting a young deathclaw before he could help the two in taking it down.

The Alpha finally collapsed with a big thud, and there was a pause as the trio watched it, making sure it was actually dead. When the robot was satisfied, it started chirping and beeping in alarm as it flew over to Six, hovering around him very quickly, seeming almost worried.  
Boone quickly went over and kneeled beside the other “Kid?” he murmured quietly and gently gripped his arm, using his free hand to swat the robot away some. The courier let out a pained sound as his eyes strained before opening and he slowly sat up. He was going to get up when Arcade stopped him and pulled out some medical supplies. He was bleeding from the chest and shoulder, too close to the neck for comfort, and Arcade needed to stop the bleeding, fast.  
“Get his armor and shirt off, and hold these to the wounds while I get things ready.” The sound of urgency and command in his voice made the sniper move quickly, pulling the younger man's armor and undershirt off, ignoring the pained groans Six emitted.

Arcade stuck a leather belt in the kids mouth and muttered a quiet “Keep him still”. Boone shifted, pulling the kid in front of him so he could grip his shoulders, making a small effort not to jostle him too much. As soon as he was in position, Gannon placed one hand on the couriers forehead, pressing it into the snipers shoulder, and slowly began to pour an entire bottle of vodka on the bleeding wounds. Six cried out in pain and thrashed as he bit down on the belt, and Boone quickly realized why the doctor pinned the kids head down, keeping him from headbutting the sniper, which he greatly appreciated.  
Once the bottle was empty, he patted the wounds dry with a mostly clean looking rag and quickly began sewing the kid up, starting at his neck since they were the most worrisome of the injuries. After almost an hour they were finished and Gannon stabbed a Stimpack into him and they rested for a few minutes, Six still leaning against Boone, whose chest tightened uncomfortably. He wasn’t used to having a warm body against him, so it made him think of Carla, but he also couldn’t stop watching the kid as he breathed and slowly got himself together.

Six moved away after a while and slowly put on a clean shirt over his bandages and some different armor from his pack, leaving the old, tattered things on the ground. “We still have one more, let’s go take care of it.” He said with a smile, but there was evident pain in his voice.  
“You can’t be serious. You just-”  
“Alright,” Boone grunted, cutting Arcade off as he stood, rifle in hand. The doctor threw up his hands in exasperation and they slowly edged further into the Quarry, shooting at the Mother Deathclaw, who roared furiously and charged toward them, but was alone against the four, so it didn’t take much to take it down. Six ran around, collecting eggs and they made their way back to Sloan, sharing their good news with the workers there, and learned a recipe of how to make a Deathclaw omelet from Jas Wilkins. 

“Does this kind of thing happen often?” Arcade asked Boone as they watched the kid, running around and talking to people, who were warm and thankful to the charismatic courier.  
“More than you’d think.” He confirmed quietly  
“There is a certain draw to him. I can definitely see why you have been traveling with him for so long.” There was an amused edge to his voice, a slight implication to it that the sniper purposefully chose to ignore. They quietly watched Six as he greeted the friendly little Molerat, Snuffles, who the courier had bandaged when he realized the whimpering thing was injured.

Their next addition to their little band of misfits happened when they went to the 188 Trading Post to get some supplies. They stumbled across a young woman named Veronica Santangelo when they were talking to people at the trading post. She was young, maybe a few years older than Six, and attractive, though she kept her head covered by a hood, and the courier struck up a friendly conversation with her.  
They talked back and forth, and soon enough, he invited her to tag along, which hadn’t surprised either of the older men. It was a pleasant surprise to see that her weapon of choice was a Powerfist, which was nice, as they needed someone who specialized in up close and personal.

As they continued traveling, making their way through the wasteland, ultimately goaled towards getting into The Strip (though Six got continuously sidetracked), several more companions joined, such as Raul, the Ghoul they found being held prisoner in Black Mountain, who was only released after the courier repaired a Mister Handy named Rhonda, making the Nightkin leader Tabitha so happy that the two thanked him before leaving together. Raul seemed pretty happy to be free of his incarceration and with protection, though Boone did grow tired of his complaints about being old pretty fast. The final companion to join their strange little group was Sharon of Rose Cassidy, who was a decent shot and a helluva drinker. They did have a couple more temporary companions, such as Lily the Nightkin who called Six dearie, and Rex the Robodog they got from the King to help heal his dying brain, but they eventually went home, not staying in the couriers company permanently. 

While the group was camped out for the night, everyone was telling stories about their pasts, getting better acquainted, building trust. Boone shared some, more than he would have liked, but it was important to know who you were traveling with, and that much Boone recognized. He could also tell everyone held a little something back, which was their right, but he also noticed something else, which apparently the others did too, as Veronica was the one to say something after everyone finished laughing after a funny story (though Boone managed to keep it to a small chuckle).  
“Alright, our fearless leader” she teased the courier “You’re turn. What’s your story?”  
“Don’t have one.” he shrugged with a chuckle.  
“No, seriously. You manage to get everyone else to spill your guts, so now it’s your turn.” Cass said after finishing a bottle of whiskey she had been working on.  
“Well, I was delivering a Platinum chip, and then I was shot in the head, and pulled out of the ground by a securitron.” He explained.  
“What about before that, boss?” Raul asked, and it was obvious the group was getting a little restless as they waited for answers.  
“No clue. I don’t remember anything before Benny and his goons tying me up in Goodsprings Cemetery.” The courier explained with a goofy grin, but his eyes seemed slightly dark, clouded by something. “Little snippets of things, here and there, like fuzzy little dreams, but nothing I can really understand. Who knows? Maybe I’m an evil monster somewhere.” He laughed, though no one seemed to enjoy the answer, not even him.  
“...Not possible.” Boone muttered quietly as he took a drink of the beer in his hands and Six looked at him, a strange expression that the older man couldn’t understand pained across his face “The way you act like a diplomat, that’s not something you can just learn.”  
“You were probably a farm boy that decided to try doing something bigger in the Mojave,” Arcade commented with a chuckle and everyone relaxed.  
“And if someone shows up for a bounty on your head, we can always turn you in for a nice reward.” Veronica joked and everyone laughed. Except for Boone, who kept his eyes on Six, who in turn quickly met his gaze. It felt very different from how they had looked at each other in the past, and it was simultaneously terrifying and comforting to Boone.

The group of six eventually managed to scrounge enough together so they could all get onto the strip when they were greeted by a Securitron that had been vaguely familiar to Boone, as he had seen the cowboy robot very briefly waiting outside of Novac, and again when he and the Courier went to Boulder City.  
“Howdy Pardner!” Victor greeted, sending everyone aside from Six slightly on edge “You’ve come a far piece, haven’t you? Welcome to New Vegas!”  
“What are you doing here?” The courier blinked in surprise  
“Consider me your personal welcome wagon! Now hear this - the head honcho of New Vegas, Mr. House, is itching to make your acquaintance. Just head for the Lucky 38. It’s the big ol’ tower shaped like a roulette spinner.”  
“Alright. I’ll go there straight off.”  
“Yeehaw, pardner! That’s the spirit. He’ll be waiting for you.” Victor cheered before rolling away toward the casino in question.

“What would Mr. House want with you?” Cass asked with a frown.  
“No clue. Maybe it has something to do with Benny.” The courier commented and headed over to the casino, his follows not far behind. 

When Boone heard that in order to see Mr. House, the kid would have to go alone he thought that would be the end of it when Six agreed, he was more than a little pissed off. There were a million things he wanted to shout but didn’t because of the companions around them. The sniper didn’t have the same closeness and trust with the rest of the group that he did with the courier, so he kept more reserved, complaining about the same amount as the others about it being a terrible idea.  
“If you’re not out in thirty minutes, we’re coming in after you,” Veronica said firmly, to which Cass nodded strongly.  
“Thirty minutes. Got it.” Six flashed a toothy smile, sending a slightly longer glance to Boone before turning around and making his way inside. 

It neared the twenty-five-minute mark when Six returned, looking exactly the same as he did before “Good news! Mr. House is letting us stay in the casino, and I know where to find Benny!”  
“We’re staying here?” Cass asked hesitantly as she looked up at the tower. None of them seemed very excited by the idea, but the courier managed to convince them on the idea,  
“Why is House helping you?” Boone questioned, ever suspicious of everything surrounding the legendary Mr. House and his motives.  
“Because apparently the Platinum Chip was his, and he wants it back.” He explained though it did nothing to ease the sniper’s distrust. 

They went inside and explored a bit of what they were allowed; the casino, lounge, and presidential suite. The only floor the rest of the group couldn’t follow their young leader was the Penthouse, where the notorious, 200-year-old figure resided. 

The group quickly made themselves comfortable and figured out sleeping arrangements. There was a master bedroom and a guest room with two beds. Cass and Veronica decided to share a bed since they were the only women, and since Boone made Raul a little uneasy, he agreed to bunk with Arcade. That left the sniper and the courier sharing the master bedroom, which neither man was even remotely uncomfortable with. It had been that way several times since they began traveling together, and it actually made Boone more comfortable since he trusted Six a bit more than the others. And who could blame him? The kid had forced him to feel like he deserved to live again, and they had been through hell and back together.  
Sleeping beside each other was normal and comfortable, as Boone and Six trusted each other to an extent the sniper hadn’t thought possible again. It felt good, but also brought on a new string of problems. While he used to be plagued by the thoughts of his wife and Bitter Springs, he was now constantly thinking about the courier who slept beside him.


	3. Chapter 3

Everyone made themselves comfortable in the Lucky 38, coming and going in and out of the hotel as they pleased, though they didn’t go further than Freeside unless they let the others know. With that comfort, however, came distance between Six and Boone, because, for the first time since they met, the courier went alone with Cass and ED-E to go investigate something with her caravans, leaving Boone behind. The kid hadn’t asked anyone to join them, and no one asked. Boone knew he shouldn’t have cared about being left at the hotel, but for some reason, it bothered him. A lot. The idea of not being near the kid to protect him from danger and his own stupidity irritated the sniper a lot. He knew it wasn’t logical, as the young adult had managed on his own for quite some time without the sniper around, but it still made him uneasy.

Six and Cass were gone for three days before they returned and shared the wild, exciting story of what happened. Apparently, upon investigating some caravans, it dawned on Cass that The Van Graff family had been responsible for the destruction of her business. While she wanted to kill the siblings, Six forced her to wait to see if he could find evidence of what they did.  
So, the courier forced Cass and ED-E to wait down the road while he used a Stealth boy and snuck into The Silver Rush. “So there are guards all over the place, ya know?” he mused as they all ate dinner together at the dining table “So I have to go real slow and careful as I creep around and make my way to the backroom, and I think it’s all good, but the door is locked! Now, I’m thinking I’m totally screwed, ya know? But, I’m already there, so I decided to try to pick the lock.”  
Boone listened to the story, and he had to admit, the kid had been a great storyteller, and much to his credit, Six rarely embellished any details, preferring to downplay certain events instead.  
“So I have the evidence from the Van Graffs, but I still need something to really prove it, so we headed to the crimson caravan company.” The courier grinned as he took a bite of his brahmin steak, and the snipers mind wandered, thinking of all the times the kid wound up doing dubious things for the greater good and wondering just how far he was willing to go. Boone’s thoughts cut off when Six got to a particularly interesting part of the story “I got both pieces of evidence, right? So, after some deliberation, we decided to go down to the Mojave outpost to talk to Ranger Jackson about what we found, and he agreed to help in reporting The Van Graffs and McLafferty, which is great. So, upside, we got revenge for Cass’s caravan, downside, if we’re seen near the Silver Rush we’ll probably get shot at.” He laughed sheepishly.  
“Good thing you have so many disguises, then,” Arcade commented blandly but seemed amused by the story.  
“Hey! Everyone should have clothes for any eventuality.” Six smiled and glanced at Boone, which made his heart do something funny in his chest. 

As they kept talking, Veronica made an observation Boone hadn’t thought of since the group gained Arcade. “You know, for being one of the biggest flirts in the wasteland, you don’t try anything with any of us.”  
Gannon looked at her “That’s...very true. Aside from some mild flirting to get me to come along, you haven’t done it since then. Why is that?” He looked at the young man, whose face was completely blank.  
“Guess its ‘cause, for the most part, I’ve really only wanted to make you all my friends.” He explained but there was a flash across his face that left almost as quickly as it came. Regret. Arcade noted. It was as if the courier hadn’t been as careful with his words as usual, and he was regretting the slip-up. No one else seemed to notice, though Boone seemed to sit a little straighter. Oh. Oh. Now that was interesting.  
Through the rest of the night, Arcade kept a subtle eye on the two long time companions, noticing how they slowly began drifting closer and closer through the night, until they were only a few feet apart at any given moment. The doctor couldn’t quite tell if it was on purpose, or purely self-conscious, but he could tell that the sniper seemed much more at ease near Six. 

That night when everyone went to bed, Boone felt a lot more relaxed with his courier back and beside him. His courier? When did he start thinking of Six as his courier? He brushed off the thought, not wanting to think about it too much.  
But he couldn’t escape those thoughts, though, as he was laying right beside the younger man, maybe at most two feet apart, listening to him breathe. The sniper was lying on his back and glanced over at Six. His hair still looked incredibly soft, the dark brown curls having gotten a bit longer than when they first met, but while his body seemed at ease, Boone knew better. 

It had been just a few days after they dealt with the Legion at BitterSprings, while they were sitting around a small fire, cooking some Squirrel bits when the courier had decided to share some personal information, to “keep things fair” he rationalized.  
“I always have a headache” he murmured quietly, staring deep into the fire “It never goes away. Been there since I got shot. Stops me from sleeping, sometimes….I’m hoping confronting Benny’ll help, but…”  
Boone nodded in a quiet understanding, knowing that need to try anything to get rid of the pain, and it definitely sounded like the kid was dealing with some pain. 

That was a memory that often stuck in Boone’s mind. He didn’t know if he divulged that much to the others, but it felt...nice, that Six told him. While he would never admit it, he felt good knowing there was such a strong feeling of trust between them. He hadn’t gotten to feel that way in a very long time.  
Six shifted, ending up closer to the sniper, who slowly, very slowly, shifted so he was closer as well, the two almost touching. When Boone awoke the next morning, he froze when he realized the kid had moved at some point during the night, his face buried in the sniper's arm. Not knowing what to do, Boone stayed still for a long few minutes before carefully reaching out and touching Six’s hair. He kept the touch very gentle and was genuinely surprised that a man who walked the wastes like he did could have such soft, silky, fluffy curls. After a moment he stopped touching the hair and carefully got up, the feel of that hair lingering on his fingers. 

Dealing with Benny had been, an emotionally exhausting deal, to say the least. Six had confronted him in the casino, with ED-E and Boone close behind him. He agreed to meet the man who shot him in his hotel room in the Tops, not wanting to cause a big scare among the people gambling and having a good time. It wasn’t their fault that Benny was such a mongrel.  
He had gone up to the hotel room in a stoic silence that unnerved the sniper slightly. He hadn’t been so quiet in any situation they had been in together before, no matter what; he would make funny little quips, keeping things light-hearted and friendly, but this was different. Six acted like a completely different person, someone Boone couldn’t recognize, and a small thought ran through his head which made his blood run cold. Is this what he used to be? He shook off the thought, understanding the desire for revenge and chalking it up to that, trying to bury his unease.  
The courier had been wordless as Benny waltzed in, his checkered suit looking ever ugly as he sat at the bar with a drink. He had paled considerably when he saw Six alive down in the casino but wasn’t letting it show now.  
“You’re little ambush didn’t go as planned.” The younger man said coldly.  
“Well, serves me right for using a 9mm.” Benny scoffed as he finished his drink before going for his gun, and Boone quickly went for his knife, but it was all over before it began. Six had been ready, pulling out the silenced 10mm pistol he had and shooting the chairman in the chest. Benny went down, and Six shot his body several more times, making sure he was dead.  
They looted the body in absolute silence, and left without looking through the rest of the hotel room, the Platinum chip and Benny’s pistol, Maria. The courier seemed to return to himself, out of the angry haze he had been in and while they walked back to the Lucky 38, he murmured with a frown “The headache didn’t go away.” with a tone filled with a dread that made the sniper feel truly uneasy.

Boone hadn’t felt a very strong urge to strangle Six in a few weeks, which he supposed should have been a warning of what was coming when the courier, dressed in a light leather armor with only Maria and a sniper rifle, explained to the group that he was going with the Happy Trails Trading Company into Zion Valley for a few weeks.  
When questioned on why, he wouldn't explain, shrugging in dismissal and simply saying “Feel like a small change in scenery.”  
“Let one of us come with you.” Cass frowned.  
“Nah, they only need one person.”  
“At least take ED-E.” Arcade practically begged, not wanting the idiot to go alone.  
“Guys, I’ll be fine.” He grinned and headed to the elevator, only stopping when Boone stepped in the way, glaring down at the kid through his sunglasses, arms crossed. They stared at each other for a long couple of moments when Boone muttered in a quiet voice “Come back in one piece”  
“I will. Promise.” The courier said, voice just as quiet, the moment feeling a lot more intimate than it probably should have been. The sniper slowly stepped aside, and let the other leave, his gut twisting painfully. He didn’t know what would be worse, seeing the kid, or just never seeing him again.

Six had come back almost a week earlier than he had told the others he would be gone and was packed like a Brahmin when he unloaded his things. He looked alright, nothing all that different, aside from his hair having been cut, shortening it some so it was just down to the nape of his neck instead of his shoulders, and a new scar had appeared on his chapped lips.  
The group spent the entire evening drinking, eating, and celebrating their leaders return, listening to all of the stories he had about his time in Zion Valley, how he convinced the Sorrows to defend their homes, and how he met the Burned man.  
A mere mention of Joshua Graham had gotten everyone’s attention. It had become a common custom to drift in and out of the Courier’s many stories, as not all captured everyone’s personal interests and attention. But meeting the legendary Burned Man; Caesar's Legate who had been covered in pitch and thrown into the Grand Canyon for losing the Hoover Dam, that was something the caught each one of Six’s companions attention, especially Boone. His jaw clenched at the very mention of someone who was once part of the Legion made his blood boil. 

“You met Joshua Graham? The Joshua Graham, the burned man himself.” Arcade asked incredulously.  
“So, he’s really not a myth, and he’s the leader of a small religious tribe called the Dead Horses,” Cass spoke slowly.  
“Mhm. I fought beside him against the White Legs and convinced him to spare Salt-Upon-Wounds to show the Sorrows that fighting with mercy is sometimes the best option.” The Courier explained.  
“You fought beside Joshua Graham, that legion scum?” Boone growled, pissed off. He couldn’t believe Six of all people would fight alongside someone who was once Caesar’s Legate.  
“No,” Six said sharply “I fought beside Joshua Graham. The Burned Man, who Caesar is constantly sending assassins to try to kill. A New Canaanite. Not a legionnaire.” 

The two stared at each other from across the table so intensely that the others ended up moving out of the way to give them some space.  
“Once a monster, always a monster.” Boone snapped “Don’t try to defend what he did.”  
“I’m not defending all of the wrongs he committed or all the hurt he caused, but I wasn’t fighting alongside a Legate. I was fighting alongside a New Canaanite and a tribe fighting to help another save their home. Not every situation is as black and white simple as you think it is.” It was obvious Six was rather hurt by Boone’s implications, though he wouldn’t come right out and say it.

Boone scoffed quietly and gulped down some of Cass’ moonshine and everyone slowly relaxed, going back to talking about the Couriers trip. Once everyone was thoroughly drunk, Six divulged something no one expected.  
“I remembered something, about before I was shot.” He commented absentmindedly, and everyone stared at him.  
“Ooh! That’s great! What did you remember?” Veronica asked excitedly.  
“Not really anything all that helpful” Six explained, “Right after I put the Ghost of She to rest, while the datura root tea was wearing off, I remembered a little bit of my childhood.”  
“Well don’t leave us hanging. What’d you remember?” Cass asked with a grin.  
“...I remembered I was born in a tribe. Can’t remember the name of it, or any real details aside from it being somewhere in the east. The only real thing I can remember is…” He trailed off for a long moment.  
“Is?” Raul asked gently.  
“...All I can remember about it was everything burning.”

Everyone called it a night after a couple of hours, which led to Boone and Six laying beside each other in a painfully awkward silence. It felt so wrong, and the sniper didn’t know how to fix it. Usually, he had to tell the courier to shut up so they could sleep, but now he was just quiet.  
“About your tribe...do you think-”  
“I don’t know.” Six cut him off quietly “I really hope it doesn’t mean what I think it does.” Boone didn’t know what to say, having very little experience in giving someone else any comfort. Instead of speaking, he slowly reached over and took the others hand in his own, giving it a gentle squeeze. The kid slowly squeezed back, both not looking at each other as they laid together in the dark. Boone thought it would hurt, but surprisingly, it felt comfortable, right. His courier was back by his side, and that was what mattered.


	4. Chapter 4

The Lucky 38 was as quiet as it was before anyone had entered it weeks prior, though it was full of residents. Arcade was reading some old medical journals at the dining table, Raul was watching ED-E fritting around, Cass was drinking, and Veronica was doing her very best to avoid Boone like the plague, who was angrily cleaning his rifle, a hostile tension between them. 

It hadn’t been Veronica’s fault. She followed the Courier into the old Brotherhood Bunker, and nothing seemed out of the norm until they went through a door and got close to a radio, which was when the gas hit. The last thing she remembered before blacking out was Six unconscious in front of her, and the faint outline of what looked to be a Nightkin. When she awoke, Veronica was completely alone, her companion nowhere to be found. Going back to the casino, the young brotherhood scribe explained what happened to the courier. ED-E made noises that sounded very worried, buzzing around Arcade intensely.  
“What do you mean, someone kidnapped him?” He questioned, sounding very concerned and exasperated.  
“I don’t know! It was dark, and I was knocked out! When we got close to the radio a bunch of gas flooded in from the vents and then we were on the ground. The last thing I can remember before I passed out is a NightKin dragging him away.” She explained very quickly  
“I’m sure the boss will be fine. He’s practically unkillable.” Raul reassured, gently patting her back. While the focus was on Veronica, Arcade noticed something out of the corner of his eye. It was Boone, looking like he was about to shoot the poor girl.  
“You should have been more careful.” The NCR vet snapped.  
“I’m so sorry,” she said, looking as if she was going to cry “it’s all my fault.”  
“It’s not your fault. Boone, cut her some slack. Six should have been more careful, too.” Arcade defended Veronica. The sniper grunted and made towards the elevator doors.  
“And just where are you going?” Cass spoke firmly.  
“To find that dumbass kid,” he muttered.  
“How? No one has a clue who took him, where they took him, or why.” His jaw clenched hard enough that Arcade thought the man was going to chip a tooth, and stormed out of the room, slamming the door to the lounge between him and the others. 

That had been almost three weeks, and no one knew what to do. They tried to go about their days as they normally would, going to the lounge or to other casinos and Freeside, but there was still no Courier. Boone and ED-E had gone out several times looking for Six, but there wasn’t a trace of him anywhere near the bunker or Camp Forlorn Hope which was nearby. There wasn’t a trace of the courier. No one wanted to have the conversation, but there was a worry of if the young man would come back at all. Arcade planned to talk about that what if, forcing everyone to sit at the dining table, and was about to speak, but froze before he could get a word out, hearing the familiar ping of the elevator.   
The doctor peered around the corner to see the courier, and quickly walked over, shadowed by Boone, who was hot on his heels. Six looked absolutely terrible. His dark, sun tanned skin seemed paler than usual, with dark circles under his eyes. He was wearing an unfamiliar, dirty outfit (caked in a strange residue, rubble and what looked like blood) that Arcade had never seen before (it was a white jumpsuit of some sort with a red X on the back), though the strangest thing about the courier by far, was the smell. He reeked of a mixture of what seemed like copper and sulfur.   
“Well, it’s good to see our fearless leader isn’t dead. Do you need medical attention?” The Follower asked casually, hiding the vague worry in his voice. He knew the young man responded better to more relaxed situations, and it looked like he needed the friendly atmosphere.  
Six shook his head, dropping his pack to the ground behind him and wordlessly drifting to the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. 

Boone stared at the door for a long moment before he slowly picked up the pack, his brows furrowing at the weight of it, and unpacked it, the other companions watching.  
Cass was finally the one to ask “Where the hell did he get a gold bar?”

-

Six slept for twelve hours straight when he got finished in the bathroom, clean, but still smelling faintly of that coppery-sulfuric odor. He started eating a huge meal as soon as he could keep his eyes open, and his friends crowded him just a bit.   
“So,” Cass asked as she took a swig of whiskey “What happened after you got grabbed?”  
Arcade noticed the way the courier’s chewing slowed, like seeing the gears in his head churning as he thought of a response, and glanced at Boone, who had been silently hovering close to the kid since he had returned. His jaw was set and it was still pretty obvious, even past the sunglasses, that he was staring hard at Six. “I uh,” he glanced ever so slightly at Veronica, I had to help with a heist.” Which was all he would elaborate. This worried the others, as the courier had loved to tell stories about his adventures. He seemed a lot better after getting some much-needed rest and cleaning up, which relieved everyone, but they could tell, there was a new kind of aging in the other's eyes like he had grown older several years in the span of a few weeks.   
“Six, are you okay?” Veronica asked softly, gently placing her hand on the others arm. He looked at her and gave a tired smile. “Yeah, sorry. Its just...it was a lot to process.”  
“Well don’t force yourself to share on our account, Boss.” Raul murmured.  
“No, it’s okay. I want to tell you guys.” He nodded and slowly told the story of the Sierra Madre. The villa, the ghosts, the people he met, Elijah, the heist, and the vault. Every dark aspect, he shared, though sometimes he had to pause, take a breath, like it was hard to relive, which made Arcade want to tell him to stop, but he didn’t, knowing this was an important step to healing.  
“While I was trying to find Christine, there were some holograms I had to avoid...one was the voice of Vera Keyes. It...it was a recording of her after the bombs fell and she was locked in her hotel room. The casino recorded her and made a hologram of the last things she said.” Six had to pause a moment, staring hard at the table “She kept crying out for Sinclair. It was so...sad. She was just so scared and remorseful. They were basically ghosts. Every hologram, a terrifying moment capturing a poor soul lost in the Sierra Madre.” Then he talked about Christine and Elijah, and what happened in the vault, which made Veronica go very quiet.  
“...What happened to Christine?” she looked at him, and the two seemed to share this strange understanding, and Arcade connected that she knew the two former Brotherhood members.   
“I couldn’t find her, Dog, or Dean after everything I got out of the hotel. She told me she was going to look after the Sierra Madre, though. That she was going to protect people from getting hurt there again.” The scribe nodded in sad understanding, a bittersweet look on her face, which only deepened when Six handed her a holotape from Elijah, which she put away to look at later.  
“After all that..are you sure you’re okay?” Cass asked gently, being gentler than she normally would.  
“Yeah. It....put a lot of things in perspective. Ya know? One of the first things I was told after I got there was “Getting to it. That’s not the hard part. It’s letting go.” That, gave me something to think about.” He explained.

That night, while Six was alone in the master bedroom with Boone, about to go to bed, the sniper silently boxed him in against the door, his right forearm flat against the wood while he gently cupped the others cheek with his other hand. His eyes desperately searched the others face for confirmation that he was alright.  
“I’m okay.” Six whispered, “Still in one piece, like I promised.” A pained wave of relief rushed over the older man’s face as he leaned forward and kissed his courier softly, chapped lips meeting cracked dry ones.   
Six gently gripped the front of his snipers shirt and kissed back, needing the touch, craving the comfort.

They slept tightly pressed together that night. Boone had given him space when he had first returned, but not then. He couldn’t. The other’s words rushed through his head like a storm. The idea of letting go. He wasn’t sure he could let go of the courier if he tried, but he wasn’t sure the other felt the same, especially after the Sierra Madre. Boone was also too afraid to ask. That was a pain he wouldn’t be able to handle, not after everything they had been through together. That very same fear of rejection was what held him back for so long before making a move with the other.

It had been a few weeks before Six was abducted that he’d done something about his feelings. He knew the courier had been interested, had seen the hints, and the subtle signs. One of the things that made him a perfect candidate for first recon had been his perception. He could pick up the tiniest of details. While he wasn’t particularly intelligent and definitely not charismatic, he made up for those faults with his perceptiveness and strength. So while he saw that the kid had been subtly trying to get closer, and dropping hints about his attraction, but he didn’t know what to do about it. He was still working through some things concerning Carla, and while he had made a lot of progress, he wasn’t sure he could open up to another person again like that.   
They had just made camp for the night after clearing out Vault 3 of the fiends who had overrun the place. It had taken a while, and a lot of bullets, but they managed to save the captured people that were in the lower levels and killed Motor Runner. Six was wearing the leader of the Fiend’s headdress (he kept it so they could present it to Colonel Hsu as proof he was dead) and they were drinking, celebrating their victory. Boone couldn’t peel his eyes away from the other's glistening lips as he drank and talked. The courier seemed to notice and chuckled out an easy “What’s up? Do I got something on my face?”  
“Yeah” the sniper nodded and moved forward, pressing his lips to the others in one fluid motion. He’d never kissed a man, so the sensation and feeling wasn’t at all what he expected, but he didn’t dislike it. The kiss was over as quickly as it began and Boone pulled away, taking a swig of whiskey like nothing happened, but when he glanced at the kid, blushing fiercely, he swore there were stars in his eyes.   
That tiny moment had changed everything. It was the small push they’d needed to move their relationship into something deeper, though. He wasn’t sure if anyone noticed, but Boone was grateful that no one decided to say anything, at the very least. What he and Six were developing was fragile.

That relationship had developed like a wildfire, which made it all the more frustrating and painful for Boone when the courier had been kidnapped while investigating that damn bunker. He watched Six’s sleeping form, silently wishing he could demand the other stop traveling, or demand to come with him on anything in the future, but he knew it would be futile. He couldn’t take the courier out of the courier, couldn’t make him stop moving. But he could always try to be there to protect him.  
Which was why it was a very ugly wakeup call when the two, along with the company of Arcade and ED-E, came across the strange crashed satellite at the old drive-in theatre, and Six, ever the reckless idiot, touched the machine and vanished.   
He’d returned days later, talking all about the Big Empty, and how he was going to start taking care of the place, popping in and out every now and then, which frustrated everyone deeply.  
“Why is it your responsibility?” Cass questioned harshly.  
“Because I was dragged there, and I’m the one that convinced the Think Tank not to venture out to do anything to the Mojave, and I have access to all of this technology that can help the wasteland. Someone needs to do it.”  
“But why does it have to be you?” Boone asked quietly, face stoic, voice strained, doing his best to hide the frustration and pain.   
“...Someone needs to do it. I have the ability. So why not me?” He said quietly. That was the courier’s answer to why he had to help people, as well. That was the moment Boone knew it was something he would just have to let go. Doing good, troubling himself, it was in Six’s veins as much as being a courier was. 

When they were alone several nights later, after a pretty intense love-making session where all of their frustrations seeped out of each of them, Boone quietly spoke against the nape of his partner's neck “don’t care if you leave, just come back in one piece. That’s as much as I can let go.”  
“Promise.” Six said softly as he fell asleep, feeling safe wrapped in Boone’s arms. 

The sniper wasn’t at all surprised when he woke up alone the next morning. As he left the bedroom, everyone was gathered in the pool room, reading a note that had been placed on the pool table with the couriers ridiculously childlike, style. 

Went to The Divide. Need to see a Courier, remember some things. Be back soon. 

Arcade frowned at the note, no one understood why Six would go to the Divide of all places, but Boone knew. He had heard a brief audio message the courier had listened to, remembering the hard look in the kid’s eyes as he heard the words. So, instead of getting angry, Boone took a breath, let out a sigh, and knew it was just something he had to let go.


	5. Chapter 5

Arcade had been the only one in the Lucky 38 when Six returned, well, not including ED-E, who the doctor tried to avoid as much as possible, not wanting to be near the old piece of Enclave tech. It was an unnerving little thing that the good doctor would have gladly kicked into the lake if it were not for Six. He had been reading in the lounge when the elevator dinged, and ED-E started zooming about all the rooms, beeping and buzzing like an excited dog. He set his book down and went to see who returned, but already had a good idea of who, as Six was the only one who received such a (warm?) greeting from the Eyebot.  
He was correct of course, and Arcade watched the younger man as he put several new items away in his bedroom. “Welcome back. Good to see you’re still alive, and good timing, I think Boone and Cass were about to start burning your things to try and summon you back from the-” His voice drifted as he really looked the courier over. Six was wearing something he had never seen before. It was a sleeveless duster with an old-world flag painted onto the back. He hadn’t put much thought into it before, but there was a long tribal tattoo running along his right arm, which seemed aggressively obvious now that the other's arms were exposed. It was black but still stood out against the others deeply tanned skin. There was a gas mask hanging from his belt and a slender wooden (flag?) pole with what seemed to be a golden eagle on the end strapped to his back. The change in appearance wasn’t what made him pause, though. What did accomplish such a feat was Six’s face. It seemed older, more tired, but there was something in his eyes that screamed of guilt, pain, and exhaustion, and something else that Arcade couldn’t place.  
“Good to see you, Arcade, feels good to be back.” Six murmured as he continued putting things away, the last thing in his grip being an old brahmin hide notebook.  
“And how was your trip to that lovely pit of radiation and destruction?”  
“It was, uh, productive...a long trip.” His voice was soft but resonated deeply as if lost in thought.  
“Did something happen while you were there?” Arcade asked carefully, unsure of the can of worms he was opening.  
“I remember. Everything.” 

Six looked around at his friends as they shot question after question at him, unable to figure out what to answer. Arcade finally calmed them so the kid could actually answer some.  
“Sorry, sorry. Okay. So, what about your tribe? Your family?” Veronica asked excitedly, and Boone, who had been standing silently in the corner, saw the courier’s eyes darken slightly. It was the same kind of dark that he had whenever he used to think about Bitter Springs. A haunted sort of look.  
“They...were one of the nineteen tribes the Legion swallowed.” He said slowly, looking at the ledger in his hands.  
The girls glanced at each other before Cass, who had permanent drunken courage decided to ask “How’d you escape?”  
“Stroke of luck.” That seemed to be all he was willing to indulge in that subject.  
“Do you want a break?” Arcade asked gently, worried for their friend's mental state. This must have been very difficult to adjust to, especially all alone. He didn’t want the poor kids' mental stability to completely deteriorate.  
“I’m fine.”

There were a lot of questions about his life, and past, some easier to answer than others, and then they got to the part that had ripped him apart from the inside when his memories flooded back to him. The courier didn’t share everything but did answer most of the questions that his friends asked to some extent.

“So why did the Divide bring all of these memories back? What happened while you were there?” Arcade asked.  
“I..met with someone, who had followed me. Followed my flag. Made me remember the things I’ve done...remember home.” He was very cryptic when it came to the Divide.  
“Someone from your tribe?” Raul asked.  
“No. That hadn’t been home for years when he started following me. The other courier. The one I was looking for, he brought me home. It made me look at what I caused, and made me think about what I can cause.”  
“Home...in the Divide?” Arcade frowned “You mean you used to live in the Divide?”  
“No, but it was home. I built a thriving community, and I single-handedly destroyed it. I was right when I told you I could have been a monster. I’m the one who destroyed the divide.” His voice was quiet and something about it was terrifying. Arcade soon recognized what it was. The pure, raw honesty, and burden of guilt. No one was really sure how to feel about what they had just been told.  
They made Six explain what he was talking about, and explain what happened in the Divide, which he did, quietly explaining the community that grew, the package he delivered, and the destruction of his home.  
“Not your fault,” Boone said quietly, speaking for the first time since the entire conversation began.  
“I’m the one who-”  
“You were just doing your job.” Cass frowned.  
“You had no idea what the package was going to do.” Veronica agreed “You couldn’t have known.”  
“I’m still responsible for what happened to all of those people. I’m still the one carrying the guilt.”  
“Maybe living with what you’ve done is your punishment,” Boone said after a few silent moments, echoing the words the courier said to him all those months ago, and the kid looked like he was going to cry, the pained relief evident in his eyes. He quickly rubbed his face to hide the look and calmed down a bit.  
Veronica decided to lighten the mood and asked “So, what’s your name?”  
“It doesn’t matter.” The courier murmured, seeming somewhat embarrassed.  
“Come on, we deserve to know at this point.” Cass teased.  
“Yeah boss, what is it?” They all looked at Six expectantly and their young leader let out a groan, conceding defeat.  
“Okay, okay. I’ll tell you...My name’s Harmony.”  
They all stared at him and soon started laughing. It was oddly fitting, and very cute.  
“Why Harmony?” Boone asked with the ghost of a smile; it was strange, putting a name to his courier, but it sounded nice.  
“People in my tribe were given names depending on what your parents hoped you would grow up to be. My family thought I would be the one to harmonize our neighboring tribes..” He seemed pretty embarrassed but Veronica thought it was too cute, and the others had to agree. There was a sweetness behind the name and heritage in it. “But, uh, just call me Six. My old name’s been dead for a long time. I didn’t even use it before I lost my memory most of the time.” The others agreed but were happy to know his name. 

Boone watched his courier talk about the past, but there was something inkling in the back of his mind that he really wanted to answer.  
“What happened while you were there. During this most recent visit?” Six (Chance?) blinked as he looked at the other like he hadn’t expected anyone to ask about it “You haven’t said any real details about it.”  
“There’s not really much to say. I traveled with a copy of ED-E, fought a lot of marked men, an uncomfortable amount of tunnelers, and a few deathclaws, no-”  
“Between you and the other courier.” Arcade corrected.  
The kid paused slightly, thinking carefully about what to say. “I met with him; Ulysses. He talked to me as I went through the Divide, and we met at an old launch site. I didn’t want to fight, and I don’t think he really wanted to either, so we didn’t. But I had to figure out how to shut down the launch, and there were Marked men coming for us. ED-E sacrificed himself to end the launch after the fighting was over.” He explained “Something about the Divide slowly made me remember everything, and Ulysses gave me some things. He even had my journal. He picked it up at some point after I left it behind.” He sounded amused, despite the grim story he had just shared. “That’s all I can say, rest is courier confidentiality.” It was unsatisfying, but that’s the best Six was going to give.

It took some time for everyone to figure out their new dynamic with the courier, as it had changed since he regained his memories. Though the real issue was between Boone and Six, as the sniper seemed in a worse mood than usual, and seemed to be avoiding the other.  
“So, what did he do to fall out of your good graces this time?” Arcade asked when he noticed the snipers worsened mood.  
“Nothing” He muttered, sounding irritated.  
“I doubt he slept with Ulysses if that’s a concern.” He offered offhandedly, thinking that was probably one of the big issues the other was having.  
“What the fu-”  
“All I’m saying is if you’re worried about it you should talk to him, and if you’re worried about it in the future, then you should also talk to him. Set some boundaries.” The doctor said casually and walked away, leaving Boone with the sudden urge to shoot him in the back.

Boone did eventually talk to the courier about what was bothering him, though it was after the kid confronted him first.  
“What’s wrong?” Six asked while they were alone “You’ve been avoiding me since I got back.”  
“Did you sleep with Ulysses?” Boone asked, a little less than tactful, but he didn’t really care. He needed the answer.  
“What? No. We just talked. Why would I sleep with him when I’m involved with you and planned on coming back to you?” This took the older man back a bit. He hadn’t been expecting the kid to be so blunt and honest, especially in regards to his feelings. They had been skirting around these topics since they started sleeping together, as it was too difficult and complicated to confront head-on. The honesty sent a painfully pleasant feeling through Boone. “I know I’m kind of a flirt, but I’ve never done wrong by anybody I’ve loved.”  
“What?” The sniper asked suddenly, eyes snapping up to stare the other in the eye, his sunglasses off as they were indoors. Six looked at him with such an at ease look on his face that it frustrated the other.  
“You heard me.” He spoke with a sly smile.  
“How the hell do you do that?”  
“Do what?”  
“How can you be so honest like that?” He muttered as he stepped closer to the kid.  
“Cuz life’s too short to lie about things that are important like that.” Six murmured as he looked up at the other and their lips met. Boone gripped the others' arm and hip tightly. It was painful, admitting hard feelings, but he needed to.  
“Love you too,” Boone muttered quietly as they separated. It needed to be said, and Six smiled softly up at the other man. He knew he could be frustrating, but was glad his sniper stuck with him. Boone, who could get very frustrated with the others' tendencies to come and go, still knew he would stick with the other and would wait if he had to. Being in love with someone who couldn’t stay in one place for long was difficult, but they would figure it out. 

Despite how pleasant everything felt, everyone could tell that the air changed around the Strip. A war was about to begin, and it was clear that the courier was going to be stuck in the middle. When it became general Oliver requested his presence at Hoover Dam, Six made an announcement to the rest of the group. “I’m going to the Dam tomorrow. Whoever wants to can join me, if not, I understand.” Arcade couldn’t help but feel surprised at the sudden maturity and collected attitude from the young man. It wasn’t like him, but he supposed the kid had grown a lot after all that happened, especially after getting memories of his old life back.  
“Well then,” Cass spoke and pulled several bottles of booze out of various cabinets, including her homemade moonshine “Let’s party. Pre victory celebration.” She grinned widely and Veronica nodded in agreement.  
“Yeah, let’s have a drink, boss. This might be the last night we’re all together like this.” Raul spoke in agreement, ever the pessimist. Six nodded with a smile and the group began sharing drinks. Veronica spent a lot of time talking to Raul, Cass, and Arcade, making jokes and having a good time.

Boone watched the group as he drank, soon focusing his attention specifically on Six. His courier. He was terrified by the idea of the younger man being ripped away from him, like everyone else he had cared about in his life, like Carla. He wouldn’t be able to take it if something happened to his precious idiot. He also didn’t like the change he knew was coming for all of them. He had grown somewhat accustomed to the others being in his life, and he didn’t want to let go of that yet, of feeling like he belonged. He couldn’t voice how much he appreciated the others being in his life, that he cared about all of them, not having the words. So, Boone settled for watching his friends and his courier, drinking quietly with them as they shared stories, jokes, and conversation. 

Six smiled softly as he watched his friends, and thought about all of his friends he had met during his travels as a courier in the Mojave. He knew things were about to change, but after all, he’d been through, he wasn’t scared. The courier reflected on his travels, thinking about Joshua and Daniel in Zion valley, then to Christine, Dog, and Dean at the Sierra Madre, the scientists at Big Mountain, and Ulysses. He thought a lot about Christine and Ulysses. While he knew he would probably not see Christine again, as he wouldn’t be able to return to the Sierra Madre, Six did plan on seeing Ulysses after everything at the Hoover Dam. He needed to, needed to see the other man, and the Divide, their Divide. He had so much to discuss with him, and admittedly, he wanted to try to salvage what was left of the Divide, or maybe, make something new, to atone for what he had created, and then destroyed. He also wanted to give Ulysses something to live with, something to follow. Maybe that was why he was so keen on helping the Mojave.  
He looked at his friends with a soft smile and drank as his mind wandered, happy he was a part of their lives, even if only for the briefest of moments, The courier knew he had made an impact. He had done things for them all, big or small. Whether it was saving the Bitter Springs refugee camp with Boone, gathering the Enclave Remnants with Arcade, or even just giving closure to Raul and Veronica, he had been happy to help them in any way he could. He loved them all and thought of everyone he had come across as family to some extent, even the lunatic scientists in Big Mountain. He stared at his cup of Moonshine and absentmindedly started talking to himself, not realizing the others had quieted to hear him  
“Farewells can be a time of sadness” He murmured, echoing words from the Sierra Madre farewell broadcast the others had heard him listening to many times, though he had created his own version of it “letting go, difficult. You know that truth more than anyone. I believe that one's life can be made anew every day, that fortunes are more than the wealth in your hands. Love, life, family, those to care for and those who will care for you: to those who know these joys, the world holds little they don't already have. Out in the world, that is your chance to begin again. I hope to see you; in happier times. Until then, I will hold you in my heart.” He had spoken softly, and it had taken a moment for the courier to register the room was silent. When he did, and finally looked up from his glass, he saw his friends, staring at him with glassy, damp eyes, and he smiled, eternally grateful for their presence and companionship.  
Six smiled softly and raised his glass to his friends, and they did the same before they drank together. His eyes locked with Boone’s; he could see the pain and fear in the others' eyes, and it cut deep. The courier knew this was terrifying for the sniper. After all, they had been through, and all the work that had been done to help the older man come to terms with the loss of his wife and the demons of his past; it could all be undone with this battle. He thought of all the moments they’d shared, and he felt a surge of determination to live so he could share many more of those moments with Boone.

Everyone got comfortably liquored up and ready to go before most of them went to bed for the night. Six walked into the master bedroom and paused in the doorway. Boone was sitting on the bed, head in his hands in the dimly lit room. “Boone?” He called softly but received no answer. The courier slowly shut the door and walked over, kneeling in front of the other man. He carefully reached out, cupping the other's hands “Boone.”  
It was more radio silence, and he carefully ran his thumbs over the others' rough knuckles “I love you.” He murmured gently.  
“Don’t.” The sniper croaked painfully “Just. Don’t.”  
“I’m sorry,” He said softly but didn’t move.  
“What am I supposed to do if you die? I can’t lose you. It’ll break me, Harmony.” Boone muttered, voice sounding rough. Six quietly kissed Boone's hands, gently pulling until he finally showed his face, eyes glassy and hard.  
“I won’t die, and I won’t leave you alone, Craig.” He said, voice soft but firm.  
“You really think you can promise that?”  
“We killed Caesar in his camp, survived the attack on Bitter Springs. I survived a bullet to the head. I know we’ll survive. We’ll beat the odds, together.”  
“You’re an idiot” He scoffed but leaned forward and kissed Six softly, pulling away long enough to also say “I love you too.” 

The next morning, the group left the Lucky 38. Arcade went to Freeside to help the Followers and Veronica went back to the Brotherhood to help them coordinate with the NCR for the upcoming battle against the legion. Boone, Cass, Raul, and ED-E, however, were alongside Six to fight for the Dam. Boone looked at Six, his courier, and closed his eyes, taking a breath. He had to trust Six and had to put aside his fear. Whatever happened now, was going to happen, so he was going to have to let go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Stay tuned! There will probably be more of this universe!


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